in this book i have it tells you to place the verb at the end. but what about if there are two verbs? do we ignore this 'law'?eg:watashi wa supaa ni ikimasu yoo niku o kaimasu.I am will go to the supermarket to by meatis that correct?

second question, the word 'dekimasu' (be able to do), can this word be used after another verb to say in order to do that?for example:tabemasu ga dekimasu, or, tabemasu koto ga dekimasu.i will be able to eat.if this is wrong, then how would you say it?

First, to be honest, I think you're getting ahead of yourself a little bit. Japanese grammar is pretty different from English grammar, so even though both languages can express the same ideas, they often do so in different ways. It's best to learn these things one step at a time, or else they will be difficult to absorb.

I know you'd be frustrated if I didn't give you the answers, though, so I'll give them anyway.

To say "I will go to the supermarket to buy meat", I would say:"Niku o kau tame ni suupaa ni ikimasu."

"Kau" is the plain form of "kaimasu" (you must always use plain forms except at the very end of the sentence). "Tame ni" means "for the purpose of" or "in order to". So it says, "In order to buy meat, I will go to the supermarket."

You got very close on your second question, though. "Tabemasu koto ga dekimasu" has only one mistake: as I said above, you must use the plain form unless it's at the end of the sentence. Therefore, it would be "Taberu koto ga dekimasu." You can also say "Taberu no ga dekimasu", but not just "Taberu ga dekimasu" -- you need the "koto" or "no" to turn the verb into a noun (compare English "Eating is good" or "To eat is good", but not "Eat is good").

- Kef

Last edited by furrykef on Fri 05.07.2010 9:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.

oh yes, very good.thanks again brother.and you are right in what you said first, i definately have jump ahead of myself. i think the reason is so that the information i learn from later things may help correct earlier things.

Good evening,This forum is helping me a lot with my studies, and, when it comes possible to me, I'd like to help people too. If I'm not mistaken, " To go to X to do Y " can be also " X e/ni + Y ni ikimasu.Your sentence "I will go to the supermarket to by meat", could be :

Suupamaaketto ni yoo niku o kai ni ikimasu.

1) The place where you go is marked by "e" or "ni" 2) The verb which expresses the action "of doing something" in that place must be in the in its indefinite form.3) And then put "ni ikimasu" at the end.

To me, when I hear v+koto+ga+dekiru, it gives a bit of a nuance like having the opportunity to do something rather than having the ability. For example:

Kon'ya taberu koto ga dekimasu ka? (Can you eat tonight? [Implying that maybe they might be too busy studying or doing other things and won't have time to do so.])

Kono ke-ki taberemasu ka? (Can I eat this cake? [Implying that it could be inedible for some reason.])

With the non-dekiru versions, there is a group of ending you add on to other verbs. Generally, this ending is -eru (kau -> kaeru, yomu -> yomeru, etc.), and with -ru verbs, it's -reru (taberu -> tabereru, suteru -> sutereru). But perhaps you should wait until you come across that in your studies to really get into it.

Let's be precise : the -reru form is the casual version of -rareru (食べられる etc.). While in oral speech you often hear -reru, both are used, and in writing, -rareru is much more common ; this is the form that should be learned first.

-reru is primarily used for two reasons : it's shorter than -rareru (and God knows Japanese love shortening words), and by using it you avoid the passive-potential confusion (the passive form is always -rareru).

Let's be precise : the -reru form is the casual version of -rareru (食べられる etc.). While in oral speech you often hear -reru, both are used, and in writing, -rareru is much more common ; this is the form that should be learned first.

-reru is primarily used for two reasons : it's shorter than -rareru (and God knows Japanese love shortening words), and by using it you avoid the passive-potential confusion (the passive form is always -rareru).

Ah, yes! Of course. I thought about this after I left my computer and realized that what I said wasn't entirely quite accurate from an academic standpoint. Romaji really does mess with my head sometimes.